Ramming machine



Jan. 19, 1960 A. KINDLER 2,921,475

RAMMING MACHINE Filed June 28, 1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VENT 0P Jan. 19,1960 A. KINDLER RAMMING MACHINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 28. 1954FIG-4 Jan. 19, 1960 A. KINDLER 2,921,475

RAMMING MACHINE Filed June 38, 1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed June 28. 19544 Sheet s-Sheet 4 United States Patent RAMIVIING MACHINE Adoll Klndler,Monkeberg, near Kiel, Germany, assignor to Bohn & Kahler MotorenundMaschinenfabrik Akflengesellschaft, Kiel, Germany Application June 28,1954, Serial No. 439,854

Claims priority, application Germany June 29, 1953 2 Claims. c1. 74-61)The invention relates to a vibrator device intended more particularlyfor the consolidation of earth and having a vibrator plate supportingthe oscillation generator and operating on the mass to be consolidated.

In connection with such appliances, it is already known to arrange thedriving motor above the base plate and to support it by springs or otherresilient means in such manner on the vibrator plate or the oscillationgenerator that it does not participate in the oscillation, or at themost only to a small extent. During the operation of such appliances,the vibrator plate consequently constantly carries out relativemovements with respect to the driving motor. In order to facilitatethese relative movements, such appliances have hitherto been provided onone or both sides, according to their construction, with belt or chaindrives connecting the motor shaft and the shaft of the oscillationgenerator and the variations in the axial spacing of the belt pulleys orchain wheels which occur with the oscillations have been compensated forby tension pulleys or the like, or belt gearings constructed in twoparts in the manner of shear arms and having a central belt pulley havebeen used as the connection. On account of the constant rapid change inthe belt or chain tension, such belt or chain gearings are subject tovery heavy wear.

The invention therefore follows a different path for facilitating therelative movement between. the vibrator part and the driving part ofsuch appliances and consists in that the intermediate gearingtransmitting the driving force of the motor to the oscillation generatoris constructed as a gearing in which the gearing parts are at a fixeddistance from one another and are not capable of rocking relatively toone another, and is connected by a cardan shaft to one of these twoparts of the appliance for the purpose of facilitating the relativemovement between the oscillation generator and the driving motor.

The result obtained in this manner is that with vibrator appliances ofthe said type, instead of using belt or chain gears as the intermediategearing, it is possible to employ any other gears which are suitable forthe mutual transmission of the revolutions of two shafts arranged at afixed spacing one above the other. Therefore, it would be po'ssible, forexample, also to use crank gears or tooth wheel gears without the wearon such gears exceeding the normal amount. However, this is also thecase when using belt or chain gears, since the belt pulleys or chainwheels are now constantly at the same distance from one another duringrunning and consequently the belt or chain tension is no longerconstantly changing during the vibrational movements.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is obtained, with a vibratorappliance of the said type in which the intermediate gear or gears areconstructed as belt or chain gears, if the belt pulleys or chain wheelsassociated with the driving motor and the o'scillation generator aremounted in bearing parts on the vibrator plate or the oscillationgenerator at a fixed distance from one another and the "ice cardan shaftor shafts are arranged between the driving motor and the belt pulley orpulleys, or chain wheel or wheels associated therewith.

In an appliance which is provided in known manner with a drive means onboth sides for the oscillation generator, the driving motor isexpediently arranged with its shaft transversely of the shaft of theoscillation generator, and combined with a change-speed gear,differential and secondary shaft to form a driving assembly, as knownper se in the construction of vehicles.

Various constructional forms of a vibrator appliance according to theinvention are shown in the drawings.

Figure 1 shows an appliance with drive means on both sides for theoscillation generator and leaf springs for supporting the driving unit,this view being a diagrammatic side elevation with the vibrator plate insection,

Figure 2 is a similar view of an appliance with a modified arrangementof the leaf spring,

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the appliance according to Figurel, the section lines to the left and right of the centre line indicatedby a chain-dotted line being staggered relatively to one another, and

Figure 4 shows the same appliance in a view corresponding to Figure 3with the vibrator plate lifted,

Figure 5 is a side elevation corresponding to Figure 1 of anotherappliance which is also provided with a drive means on both sides, butin which the driving unit is supported by means of spiral springs.

Figure 6 is the corresponding section related to Figure 3, and

Figure 7 shows the same appliance in a view corresponding to that ofFigure 6, but with the vibrator plate raised.

a In all the constructional forms which are illustrated, the applianceconsists of the vibrator plate 1, the oscillation generator providedwith the eccentrics 2 and the shaft 3, the housing 5 which is fixed onthe vibrator plate 1 by means of angle plates 4 or the'like and whichaccornmodates the oscillation generator and the driving unit 10. Thedriving unit 10 is in each case formed by the driving motor 6 which isnot shown in the sectional figures and which has the shaft 7, thedifferential 8 and the secondary shafts 9.

The drive of the oscillation generator 2, 3 takes place at each side byway of a belt gearing comprising the upper belt pulleys 11, the lowerbelt pulleys 12 which are fast with the shaft '3 and the V-belts 13which are indicated in chain-dotted lines. The shaft 3 is mounted inball-bearings 20 which are arranged inside bearing housings 21 of, themachine housing. I

In all the constructional forms which are illustrated, the drive unit 10is resiliently supported on the housing 5 of the oscillation generator2, 3 in such manner that it constitutes a mass not participating or onlyparticipating to a slight extent in the oscillations of the vibratorplate 1 and the oscillation generator 2, 3 and the housing 5, thevibrator plate 1 being statically loaded by said mass in a manner knownper se.

In the constructional form according to Figures 1 to 4, this is effectedby means of leaf springs 14 which, according to Figures 1, 3 and 4,engage by means of the angle members 15 on the one hand on the housing 5of the oscillation generator and, on the other hand, by means of thebearing lugs 16 and 17 on the supporting frame 18 for the driving unit10. The leaf springs 14 are rigidly connected in the bearing lug 16 tothe supporting frame 18, but are guided for movement in the bearing lugs17. The supporting frame 18 is fixed to the base plate 19 of the driveunit 10.

The constructional form according to Figure 2 dif- 3 fers from thatdescribed above only by the fact that the leaf springs 14' are curvedupwardly.

In the constructional example according to Figures 5 and 7 thesupporting frame 18 of the drive unit is supported at four places bymeans of the spiral springs 22 on brackets 23 of the housing 5.

In contrast to the known constructions, the upper belt pulleys 11 in allthe constructural forms of the vibrator appliance according to theinvention which have been illustrated are arranged at a fixed distancefrom the lower belt pulleys 12. For this purpose, the upper belt pulleys11 are rotatably mounted on lateral journals 24 by means of the ballbearings 25, said journals being rigidly connected to supporting arms 26or being in one piecewith the latter, said arms in turn being rigidlyconnected to the top wall 27 of the housing 5. Since the lower beltpulleys 11 are keyed to the shaft 30f the oscillation generator, whichshaft is mounted so as to be immovable vertically in the housing 4, thespacing of the belt pulleys 11 and 12 and the distance between theirshafts is invariable.

The relative movements of the vibrator plate 1 and of the oscillationgenerator 2, 3 relatively to the driving unit 10 not participating oronly participating to a small degree in the oscillations, whichmovements are shown in Figures 3 and 4 or 6 and 7, are rendered possibleaccording to the invention by cardan shafts 30 which are guided throughthe hollow journals 24, and are connected at one end to the secondaryshafts 9 and at the other end to the upper belt pulleys '11 so as to bemovable in all directions but not reciprocally rotatable. The connectionto the upper belt pulleys 11 is effected by means of bearing elements31, which engage in the hole 32 of the hollow journal 24 and are rigidlyconnected externally of the latter to the belt pulleys 11.

The hole 32 in the hollow journal 24 is of such dimensions, apart fromits outer part accommodating the hearing element 31, that the cardanshaft 30 is able to assume the inclined position as shown in Figures 4and 7 relatively to its normal position which is illustrated in Figures3 and 6.

In the constructional examples which are illustrated and which have adrive means on both sides, the cardan one above the other. Furthermore,it is also possible to use an intermediate gear arranged on only oneside, and the said intermediate gear or gears could also be fixed to thenon-vibrating driving part of the appliance instead of to the vibratorpart. In this case, the cardan shaft would then have to be connectedbetween the intermediate gear and the shaft of the oscillationgenerator.

I claim:

1. A freely movable vibrator mechanism, comprising a vibrator platedevice, an oscillation generator device mounted on said plate, a drivingmotor elastically supported toward the center of said plate, a couplingmember, said motor being coupled to the oscillation generator device bysaid coupling member, bearing members positioned at fixed distances fromone another on one of said devices, coupling member supportspositionally corresponding with the drivingmotor and the oscillationgenerator device supported by said bearing members, and cardan shaftscoupled between the motor and the oscillation generator device totransmit power from the motor via the supports and coupling member tothe oscillation generator device.

2. A vibrator appliance comprising a vibrator plate adapted for freelyresting on material to be consolidated and being freely movable in everydirection along said material, a member firmly fixed on the vibratorplate, a driving motor resiliently supported by and approximately in thecenter of said vibrator plate, said motor constitut-' ing a massstatically loading the vibrator plate and independent of theoscillations of said vibrator plate, an oscillation generator mounted onthe vibrator plate, an intermediate gear coupled between said motor andgenerator for transmitting driving force thereb'etween, bearing memberssuperposed at a fixed distance from one another on said fixed member,said gear including devices rotatable in the bearings and means couplingsaid devices for the transfer of forces therebetween, and cardan shaftscoupling selected of said devices to said motor for the transmission ofpower and to permit relative changes in distance between the motor andthe oscillating plate.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,018,294 Baily Oct. 22, 1935 2,080,477 Higgins et al May 18, 19372,094,910 Baily Oct. 5, 1937 2,141,301 Jackson Dec. 27, 1938 2,209,656Mall July 30, 1940 2,223,024 Beierlein Nov. 26, 1940 2,456,616Buckendale Dec. 21, 1948

